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to the SeniorCare program. Due to the incorrect address, Harold did not receive the Renewal Application form to complete until late in January. The completed Renewal Application was received by the SeniorCare program on February 10th, along with a letter explaining why it was late. Harold’s new SeniorCare benefit period is February 1st through January 31st, since the one-month gap in coverage was due to an agency error. This page last updated in Release Number: 26-03 Release Date: 08/12/2026 Effective Date: 08/12/2026 33.6 SeniorCare Financial Requirements 33.6.1 Assets There is no asset test for SeniorCare. In general, cash that is received as a result of converting an asset from one form to another is not income. This includes withdrawals from savings and/or checking accounts, CDs, or money market accounts. However, special provisions apply to retirement benefits (see SECTION 33.6.7 GROSS RETIREMENT INCOME) and Cobell buy-out payments (see SECTION 16.7.11.2 LUMP SUM PAYMENTS UNDER THE SETTLEMENT OF THE COBELL V. SALAZAR CLASS-ACTION TRUST CASE). Income generated from any assets that the SeniorCare member may have is considered budgetable income and must be reported on the application or renewal application. Example 1 Eric has a savings account with $5,000 in it. Eric’s savings account is considered an asset, but the interest that he anticipates earning is countable income. Eric anticipates withdrawing $1,000 from his savings account during the coming year. This amount does not count as income. It is an asset that has been converted to cash. Only the interest Eric anticipates receiving from the savings account is countable income. Any withdrawals from his savings account are considered the conversion of an asset and are not counted as income. 33.6.2 Income Income for SeniorCare is based on what the FTG expects to receive in the next 12-month period, beginning with the month of application. The incomes for the applicant and their spouse are counted together if they live together. Applicants can use the previous year’s information from tax returns or other sources as a guide when estimating what to report on their application. Applicants are asked to round income amounts to the nearest whole dollar when entering their good faith estimates on their SeniorCare application or renewal application. Social Security income will always be verified. For all other income types, if reported amounts seem unreasonable or questionable, further verification may be obtained from the applicant or other available sources, such as a data exchange. The income of a spouse who is in the SeniorCare FTG is included in the estimate of the annual, budgetable income even if they do not apply or are nonfinancially ineligible. However, the spouse’s income is not counted if one of the exceptions noted in SECTION 33.4 FISCAL TEST GROUP applies. Annual income is determined prospectively from the month of application through the next 12 calendar months. Income exempted for Medicaid eligibility is also exempted for SeniorCare (see SECTION 15.3 EXEMPT AND DISREGARDED INCOME), including EITC and income tax refunds (see SECTION 15.5.7 INCOME TAX REFUNDS).